Method and means for mixing liquids with dry material



T. B. PETERSON METHOD AND MEANS FOR MIXING LIQUIDS WITH DRY MATERIAL.

' APPLICATION FILED AUG= I9, I921 1,415,851.

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T. B.'PETERSON METHOD AND MEANS FOR MIXING LIOUIIDYS WITH DRY MATERIAL.

APPLICAUON HLED AUG: I9, 192% 1,41 5,851 Patented May 9, 192' 2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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Quotas,

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THORWALD 1B. PETERSON, OF PLATTSMOUTH, 1\TIE BRASI[ IA, ASSIGNOR TO LEE C. SHARP, 0F PLATTSMOUTH, NEBRASKA.

METHOD AND MEANS FOR MIXIN 'G- LIQUIDS WITH- DRY MATERIAL.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 9, 1922.

Application filed August 19, 1921. Serial No. 493,607.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THORWALD B. Pm SON, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Plattsmouth, in the county of Cass and State of Nebraska, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Methods and Means for Mixing Liquids with Dry Material, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to a method and means for mixing liquids with dry pulverulent material, and is particularly adapted for uniformly incorporating definite proportional quantities of sticky and adhesive liquids, such as molasses, with dry, granular or pulverulent material, such as alfalfa meal and similar ground or milled forage, in the preparation of stock foods. It is the object of my invention to provide a method for mixing materials ofthe classes named whereby the proportions of the materials will be uniform throughout the entire mixed prodnot, and to provide a simple and convenient means for performing the mixing operation in accordance with the method, the mechanism being adapted to deliver the mixed materials continuously and with a minimum expenditure of ower, and to accurately gage the proportions of the materials in the mixed product. More specific objects of my invention will appear hereinafter.

In the accompanying drawings Fig. 1 is a longitudinal vertical section of a mechanism embodying the means and adapted to carry out the mixing method involved in my invention, and Fig. 2 is a partial front View of the mechanism, and partially a vertical transverse section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1.

In the manufacture of stock foods from ground forage such as alfalfa-meal, and

mixture of the materials in the desired proportions. It is desirable that only a sufiicient quantity of the molasses be employed in such mixtures to serve the purposes above named, and when such a proportion of molasses is mixed uniformly with the dry material the latter remains in a granular and substantially dry condition, the molasses of by suitable mechanical means.

'merely causing the dust or very finely divided particles of the material to adhere to each other and to the surfaces: of the larger particles. The common practice has been to heat the molasses, whereby to make the consistency thereof as thin as possible, and then to spray the hot molasses over a body of the meal either before or during agitation there- By such methods of mixing the materials, however, there is a marked tendency for the material to ball or form into compact and more or less globular masses which contain an excessive proportion of the molasses and only a small part of the whole body of the dry material, leaving a large part of the meal or dry material unmixed with its due proportion of the molasses. On account of the above mentioned difliculties in mixing, and in order to secure some admixture of the molasses throughout the entire mass of the dry material, it has usually been necessary to use an amount of molasses in excess of that required or desirable for its nutritive,

flavoring and agglutinative effect upon the ing of the product unless the same is dried before storing or shipment thereof. My invention is especially designed to overcome the above mentioned difficulties in the mixing of the materials stated, but is not limited to the mixing of the specific materials named, and is broadly applicable to the mixing of any materials of which those named are illustrative of the class.

The method of mixing, which character izes-miy invention, consists essentially in applying to a smooth surface a layer or coating of the liquid, then striking from the surface the excess of liquid whereby to leave thereon a uniform coating or film, then spreading over said liquid film a layer of the dry material and gaging to uniformity the depth or thickness of said layer of dry material, then pressing the-layer of dry material toward the liquid-coated surface whereby to bring the same into intimate contact with and cause the particles thereof to adhere to the liquid filmupon the surface,

and finally striking or scraping off the entire body of material from the surface. By

the; pressing of the layer of dry material against the film of liquid the materials are intimately and uniformly commingled, so that in the resultant product the proportions of the mixed materials are the same throughout, and the relative quantities of liquid (and dry material may be accurately and a continuous output of the. mixed product obtained; Referring to'the machine or apparatus shown in the-drawings, I provide a base-member 10 having therein and formed integrally therewith a trough or receptacle 11 provided .at the front end with a flange for connection with a pipe 12 through which is supplied the liquid which is to be mixed with the dry material. Upon the base-member are secured a pair of upwardly extending side-pieces 13 having in the lower portions thereof bearings for a transverse shaft '14. On said shaft, between the bearings, is secured a roller comprising a pair of end-disks 15 and an intermediate drum or cylinder 16 of which the' ends are secured to the disks 1 5 as shown in Fig. 2. The diameter of the drum'or cylinder is less than that of the end-disks, whereby the peripheral portions of the latter form an annular flange-like, projection at each end of the cylinder. The liquid in the receptacle 11 is maintained at a level such that the cylinder 16 will 'dip'therein, and the upper portions of the end-disks 15 are enclosed peripherallyby means of flanges 17 which extend inwardly from the side-pieces 13, the said flanges serving to catch and direct back into the receptacle 11 any of the liquid therefrom which may be thrown off centrifugally from the end-disks. Adjacent to the hubs of the end-disks the same are provided with annular outwardly belled flanges 18 which extend over the adjacent inner ends of the bearings for the shaft 14, and prevent the entry' to theportion of the shaft within the bearing of' any of the liquid which v. might flow down the sides of the end-disks from the peripheral portions thereof when the movement of the roller is stopped. When'in operation, the roller is revolved at 1 a speed such that the liquid which engages the sides oft he end-disks will be thrown outward centrifugally and thus prevented from comin' into proximity to the shaftbearin s; he direction of rotation of the roller is indicated by the arrow in Fig. 1,

i and at the front or upwardly moving side of the roller there is arranged a bar 19 which is secured to the top of the base-member, as shown, the rear portion. of said bar extending between the projecting portions of the end-disks 15, and the lower rearward edge of the bar being close to and parallel with the adjacent surface of the cylinder 16. As indicated in Fig. 1, said bar 19 serves to strike from the surface of the cylinder the surplus or excess of the liquid which tends to adhere thereto, causing the excess liquidto remain within the receptacle 11, and permitting a thin layer or film A of the liquid to remain upon the surface of the cylinder. The thickness of the layer or film A may, of course, be varied by adjusting the striker or gage-bar 19 toward or away from the cylinder.

Above the bar 19 there is a cross-bar 20 of which the ends are secured to the sidepieces 13, and which supports an inclined said arms being pivotally mounted upon a shaft '25 of which the end-portions are secured in lugs 26 formed integrally with the side-pieces 13. A gear 27 is secured upon one end of the shaft 25 and meshes operatively with a gear 28 mounted on the main shaft 14, and the latter shaft carries at its opposite end a pulley 29 which may be connected by belt with a suitable source of power. The relation of the pressure-cylinder 22 to the main cylinder is gaged by means of adjustable stop-pins 30 arranged at the upper edges of the side-pieces 13, the ends of the arms 24, which form the bearings for the shaft 23, normally resting upon said stop-pins, as shown. The arms 24 are pressed yieldingly down against the stoppins by means of springs 31, which engage projecting lugs 33 at the ends of the arms, there being guide-rods 32 secured to the side-pieces. 13 and extending up through said springs 31 and through openings in the lugs 33, and the upper ends of the springs engaging nuts 34 screwed onto the upper ends of said guide-rods.

To the hub-portions of the arms 24, adjacent to the shaft 25, are secured the ends of a scraper-bar 35 of which the sharpened edge is set to engage the surface of the cylinder 22, whereby to dislodge therefrom any of the material which may adhere thereto. At the rear side of the base-member there is arranged a scraper-bar 36 having a sharpened edge which engages the main cylinder 16. The bar 36 is mounted upon a holder which the screws 38 extend into the basemember, thus permitting the holder to be adjusted toward the cylinder for compensating wear of the scraper-blade. The material dislodged from the upper cylinder 22 falls back onto the layer of material upon the main cylinder, and the entire body of material is dislodged from the main cylinder by the lower scraper 36, which is arranged at an inclined position, as shown, to facilitate the discharge of the material over the blade. The screws 39, which secure the bar 19 to the base-member, pass through slotted openings in said bar to permit the required adjustment thereof for varying the thickness of the liquid film A upon the main cylinder.

In practice, the proportioning of the quantities'of liquid and dry material is effected principally by variation of the thickness of the liquid film A upon the cylinder, the dry materlal being supplied through the chute 21 at a constant rate, and the total quantity of dry material which passes into the mixed product being controlled to some extentby adjustment of the stop-pins 30 tohold the cylinder 22 farther from or permit the same to more closely approach the main cylinder.

Now, having described my invention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patcut is: V

l. The method of mixing a liquid with pulverulent'material, consisting in applyin to a smooth surface a. coating of the liquid,

- striking off the excem of liquid to leave a film thereof upon the surface, applying a layer of the pulverulent material over the liquid film, pressing the pulverulent material into intimate contact with. the liquid film, and finally striking from the surface the layer of commingled materials.

2. The method of mixing an adhesive liquid with dry material, consisting in ap plying to a smooth surface a liquid coating of gaged thickness, then applying over said liquid coating a layer of the dry material and pressing the latter into intimate contact with the liquid, and then scraping from the surface the commingled materials. 7

3. The method of mixing an adhesive liquid with dry pulverulent material, consisting in successively applying to a smooth continuoussurface a layer of the liquid and a layer of the dry materiahpressing said materials into intimate contact with each other, and then striking from the surface the commingled materials.

4. Means for mixing a liquid with pulverulent material, comprising in combina tion means having a smooth surface, means for applying to said surface a uniform coating of the liquid, means for applying over said liquid coating a layer of the pulverulent material, means for pressing the layer of pulverulent material into intimate contact with the coating of liquid, and means for dislodging theco-mmingled materials from the surface.

5. Mechanism for mixing an adhesive liquid wit-h pulverulent material, comprising in combination means having a smooth endless surface, means for applying a coating of the liquid to'said surface, means for gaging to uniformity the thickness of said liquid coating upon the surface, means for applying over said liquid coating a uniform layer of the pulverulent material, means for. pressing said layer against the liquid coating to commingle the same therewith, and means for dislodging the commingled material from the surface.

6. Mechanism for -mixing an adhesive liquid with pulverulent solid mate-rial, com prising in combination a rotating cylinder, means for applying to a portion of the smooth peripheral surface of said cylinder a uniform coating of the liquid, means for applying over said liquid coating a. layer of a the pulverulent material, means for pressing said layer toward the cylinder to commingle the same with the liquid coating thereon, and means for dislodging the commingled materials from the cylinder.

7. Mechanism for mixing a liquid with pulverulent material, comprising in combination a horizontal rotating cylinder having a smooth peripheral surface, a liquid receptacle into which said cylinder dips whereby to receive upon the surface therof a. coating of the liquid, a stationary member positioned adjacent to the ascending side of the cylinder to strike from the surface the excess of liquid and gage to uniformity the thickness of the coating upon the surface, means for applying dry material at the upper portion of the cylinder, and means at the descending side of the cylinder for striking all of the material therefrom.

8. .The method of mixing a liquid with pulverulent material, consisting in applying a uniform coating of the liquid to a portion cf a smooth. endless continuously moving surface, then applying a layer of the pulverulent material over a successive portion of the liquid-coatedsurface, and finally dislodging all of the material from the surface at a further successive portion thereof.

THORWALD B. PETERSON. 

